A family of four whose holiday to the Pontins Brean Sands Holiday Park was ruined when three of them suffered from gastric illness have instructed expert Public Health lawyers at Irwin Mitchell to investigate the cause of their illness.

Clare Nelson, 42, her husband Mark, 43, and their two children Jude, 10, and Hayden, 8, visited the Burnham-on-Sea holiday park in July 2015.

However, shortly after the three-day weekend break Clare, Mark and Jude all fell ill with diarrhoea, vomiting and stomach pains. Both Clare and Mark continued to suffer severely from these symptoms after they returned home to Tamworth, Staffordshire.

Clare visited her local GP and after a number of tests was found to be suffering from Campylobacter, which is reportedly the most common cause of food poisoning in the UK, and considered by the Food Standards Agency to be responsible for more than 280,000 cases in the UK every year.

The family has now instructed Public Health lawyers at Irwin Mitchell, who have vast experience representing victims of major outbreaks of illness in the UK and across the world, to investigate the cause of their illness and the hygiene standards in place at the Pontins Brean Sands Holiday Park, which is operated by Britannia Jinky Jersey Limited.

Clare, a self-employed child minder, said the family were disappointed by the quality of the resort and its hygiene conditions which seemed substandard, as there was rotten food in the fridge in their chalet when they arrived and the resort’s swimming pool was closed on one occasion as there were faeces found in the pool.

Expert Opinion

“Having heard first-hand accounts of the illness experience Clare and her family endured at Pontins in Burnham-on-Sea we have launched our own investigation into the hygiene standards in place at the resort.

“The severity of Campylobacter and other bacterial gastric infections cannot be underestimated and we regularly see cases where our clients suffer long-term effects that impact their day-to-day lives and often force them to take long periods off work to recover.

“We are determined to work quickly and thoroughly to determine the cause of the illness Clare and her family suffered and would urge anyone else affected by these issues to get in touch with us as soon as possible to assist us with our enquiries.”

Jatinder Paul, Associate

Clare continued to suffer with severe symptoms for over a month after she returned from the holiday and has still not fully recovered. Her husband Mark is also suffering from symptoms and has lost a significant amount of weight as a result.

Clare said: “We weren’t happy with the standard of our accommodation and when three of us fell ill with awful symptoms it just added insult to injury.

“Both Mark and I suffered for weeks after coming home and it was extremely concerning when I tested positive for Campylobacter. Some of the symptoms have now calmed down but we still don’t feel completely back to normal.

“What we want now are answers as to what has happened, as well as reassurances that other people are not going to see their family breaks at Pontins ruined in a similar way in the future.”

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